Black Bear Diner franchise research

Investment by format

Format-specific estimates only. Do not combine one format's minimum with another format's maximum.

Investment sourceFDD p.19 ↗

Franchise fees and ongoing costs

Franchise fee

$24,000 to $55,000 · Extracted Item 5 scalar range, not a universal minimum or maximum; formats, eligibility, discounts and waivers require original-filing review.

Royalty

4.5% · 4.5% of Gross Sales, paid weekly by EFT

Marketing contribution

1% (basis not captured; see original filing)

Technology fee

Software License Fees ~$250-$1,100/month (Ctuit, Toast/Aloha POS, QSR Automations, Connected Payments, Playerlync); plus Olo online ordering/delivery ~$100-$1,500/month

Other fees

Not captured

Working capital (FDD Item 7)

$100,000 to $150,000 estimated to cover operating expenses, including employee salaries, for the first three months of operation; not guaranteed to be sufficient

Fees sourceFDD p.14 ↗

Working capital is drawn from Item 7. The Investment source below locates the investment section, not an independently verified working-capital scalar.

Investment sourceFDD p.19 ↗

Franchise fee sourceFDD · page not captured ↗

Financial performance: Item 19

Item 19 captured

Yes

Metric / basis

Average and median Gross Sales (by tercile: top/middle/bottom third) for franchised and company-affiliated restaurants open the full fiscal year; plus company-affiliated Gross Sales, Cost of Goods Sold, Labor, and 4-Wall EBITDA

Reporting period

Fiscal year 2025 (ended December 31, 2025) and fiscal year 2024 (ended December 25, 2024)

Sample

FY2025: 88 franchised restaurants and 70 company-affiliated restaurants open the entire fiscal year (excludes newly opened units and casino-located units); FY2024: 86 franchised and 65 company-affiliated restaurants

Reported average

$2,820,694

Reported median

$2,697,884

Owner income is not captured. Gross sales and EBITDA are not owner pay. Results depend on the disclosed metric, sample and period; consult the full filing.

Item 19 performance sourceFDD p.48 ↗

Unit growth: Item 20

Reporting year

Not captured

Scope

franchised outlets

Starting outlets

92

Year-end outlets

97

Net change

+5

Derivation

ending minus starting outlets

Openings

7

Terminations

0

Non-renewals

0

Other closures

2

Reacquisitions

0

Transfers

3

Transfers are not closures. Net change is ending minus starting outlets for the stated scope and year, or complete openings less terminations, non-renewals, other closures and reacquisitions. Missing inputs stay unknown.

Unit growth sourceFDD p.52 ↗

SBA loan history

Loan activity

3 approvals

Activity window

FY2021-FY2026 YTD; snapshot 2026-06-30

Median SBA loan

$859,500

Median loan window

FY2023-FY2026 YTD through 2026-06-30

Median loan sample

2 loans

Historical charge-off share

0.00%

Cohort

7(a) FY2010-2019 approvals

Numerator / denominator

0 / 20

Formula

CHGOFF / (PIF + CHGOFF + EXEMPT) × 100

This is a historical loan-level share, not a franchise failure probability or location survival rate. Loan size is not total investment. Other loan statuses are excluded from the seasoned denominator. Activity combines 7(a) and 504 approvals, excluding canceled and not-funded records; this is not a rolling five-year count. FY2024-25 franchise tags are sparse after directory suspension; fewer tagged loans do not establish brand decline. Recent charge-off cohorts are immature.

SBA loans sourceSBA data · Jun 30, 2026 ↗

Median loan amounts are financing context, not startup cost. The median window is separate from the seasoned charge-off cohort.

Median SBA loan sourceSBA data · Jun 30, 2026 ↗

Questions before you invest

How much does Black Bear Diner franchise cost?

standard (single-unit Franchise Agreement): $1,495,700 to $2,238,600; Area Development Agreement (first restaurant, example: 5-unit development): $1,625,200 to $2,368,100 These are format-specific estimates, not a guaranteed cash requirement. Franchise fee: $24,000 to $55,000 · Extracted Item 5 scalar range, not a universal minimum or maximum; formats, eligibility, discounts and waivers require original-filing review..

Investment sourceFDD p.19 ↗

Franchise fee sourceFDD · page not captured ↗

How much do Black Bear Diner owners make?

Owner income is not captured. Gross sales and EBITDA are not owner pay. Item 19 metric: Average and median Gross Sales (by tercile: top/middle/bottom third) for franchised and company-affiliated restaurants open the full fiscal year; plus company-affiliated Gross Sales, Cost of Goods Sold, Labor, and 4-Wall EBITDA. Sample: FY2025: 88 franchised restaurants and 70 company-affiliated restaurants open the entire fiscal year (excludes newly opened units and casino-located units); FY2024: 86 franchised and 65 company-affiliated restaurants. Period: Fiscal year 2025 (ended December 31, 2025) and fiscal year 2024 (ended December 25, 2024).

Item 19 performance sourceFDD p.48 ↗

What's the SBA charge-off rate for Black Bear Diner?

0.00%; numerator / denominator: 0 / 20. Historical 7(a) FY2010-2019 approvals; CHGOFF / (PIF + CHGOFF + EXEMPT) × 100, snapshot 2026-06-30. This is not a franchise failure probability. Median SBA loan: $859,500; window: FY2023-FY2026 YTD through 2026-06-30; sample: 2 loans. Median financing is not total investment.

SBA loans sourceSBA data · Jun 30, 2026 ↗

Median SBA loan sourceSBA data · Jun 30, 2026 ↗